Complex Upholstery
by LegallySpeaking
Summary: Alex centric. It all starts with the purchase of a couch. Alex is convinced that he finally has a friendship with a girl that doesn't revolve around sex. His friends point out to him that there's something odd about that entire concept and try to get to the bottom of the 'new' Alex. Alex/Jo.
1. Chapter 1

Jackson sat at one end of Alex's new couch, nursing a beer with his feet stretched out to rest on one of the numerous cardboard boxes littering the living room floor.

"Seriously, you still have no furniture?"

Alex wandered into the room and sat down next to him.

"I have furniture...I have a couch," he grumbled, grabbing a beer from the six pack that was perched on top of yet another cardboard box between them.

"Sorry, my bad. You have no furniture except for this extremely feminine looking couch that your girlfriend bought you," he joked, smirking as he mentally congratulated himself for teasing Alex, "...it's comfortable though...you know, for a girly couch."

"It's not a girly couch, it's...I dunno, modern," he replied, pulling his own feet up to lie on a box marked_ 'clothes n shit'_ that had yet to make it's way to Alex's bedroom, "...and she's not my girlfriend."

"Of course she isn't. She just buys you a couch, goes out drinking with you and sleeps over because of your startling personality. You're obviously sleeping with her. And if you're not, you're thinking about it."

Alex frowned and stared at Jackson.

"She bought me the couch because she didn't want to sleep on the floor. It was completely self-serving on her part."

Jackson laughed and took another swig of his beer.

"You're clueless Karev. It's the fact she's staying here in the first place."

"It's not like it happens every night and I only _let_ it happen because I'm not entirely convinced she's not still living in her car."

"Living in her car?"

Alex froze but managed to swallow the beer lodged in his throat before shaking his head to dismiss what he had just let slip.

"Nothing, it's a long story. Besides I'm a home owner now. I'm done sleeping with interns."

"You only stopped when Callie told you to and because you're scared of her."

"At least I'm not..." he paused to swig on his beer bottle and for dramatic effect, "..._banging_ an intern to get over my ex."

"I'm not bang...sleeping with Stephanie to get over April. I like Stephanie."

"No, you like that she's half-way competent and is just slutty enough to sleep with you in your car..." he smirked, feeling Jackson's eyes burning a hole in the side of his head before turning to see his friend's eyebrows almost reach his hairline, "...oh, did you think nobody knew about that? Jo told me everything last week. At least the only person April would blab to is God."

Jackson groaned and took a long drink of beer, contemplating the entire situation.

"This is unacceptable...I'm basically you six months ago."

"Hey, if the interns are so quick to give it up, it's no bad thing!"

"Ok, see there it is...there must be something going on between you and Wilson. You _clearly_ can't resist the lure of the intern, yet somehow you haven't made a move on Jo, who by all accounts, is one of the least annoying ones."

"Is it really so hard to believe I grew out of that?"

"Yes."

Feeling cornered and not wanting to get into a deeper conversation over his friendship with Jo, Alex tried a swift change of subject.

"You know, as much as I fully support the Attending's right to screw a consenting intern, I don't get why you would bang Edwards over fixing things with Kepner. Kepner might be weird but it makes way more sense than you and Edwards."

Falling into Alex's diversion, Jackson sighed and shook his head.

"It's...complicated."

"No it's not. You thought you knocked her up, you proposed a shot gun marriage and in the process, completely freaked her out into thinking that the only reason you were doing it was because you thought it was the right thing to do instead of actually asking her what it was _she_ wanted."

"Just...shut up. It's none of your business."

"Alright, alright, I'll shut my trap, but just for the record, you're an idiot."

Jackson turned to look at Alex but instead of retaliating, he finished his beer and pulled out another bottle with a sigh.

"Yeah, you're probably right. Must be a sign of the apocalypse or somethin."

Just then the front door opened and Jo stumbled through it holding a bottle of liquor.

"Hey guys...look what I brought, tequila!"

Jo shuffled into the den doing an awkward drunken dance before sitting herself on the floor, raising Jackson's eyebrows once again.

"She has a key."

Alex frowned and glared at him, before repeating his friend's earlier comment, "Just...shut up."


	2. Chapter 2

"I thought you said no roomates?" Cristina whispered as she gestured to the sleeping intern with one of her legs hanging off the edge of the couch.

"And yet you're still here," Alex grumbled as he stood leaning against the entrance to the living room, watching his friend on the couch, her outstretched leg twitching in her sleep like a dog.

"Oh please, like you don't need my rent check - is _she _paying you rent?"

"Why would she pay rent? She doesn't live here."

Cristina rolled her eyes and retreated to the kitchen with her coffee, "you wouldn't think so, considering this is the fourth morning this week I've come downstairs to find her sprawled across your creepy, totally bought by your girlfriend, couch."

With one last look at Jo, who had just rolled over and inadvertently whacked herself in the face mid-sleep, Alex trailed after Cristina.

"So she crashed here for a few nights, what's the big deal? There's nothing more to it. And I told you, technically I bought the couch myself."

"Whatever, keep telling yourself that."

Failing to see that Cristina was baiting him, Alex furiously protested.

"She's just a friend Yang, get over it already."

"Believe it or not, your love life is not one of my priorities, my valve repair this morning however _is_. See you later evil spawn," she taunted before dumping the coffee mug in the sink and pulling her bag over her shoulder, "Oh, but if you could put buying groceries and oh, I don't know, some furniture on your list of priorities then I won't ask you to explain why there's a pile of her dirty clothes sitting with your pile of dirty clothes in the laundry room, you know, if she's not your girlfriend..."

"Go to hell Yang."

Just as the sound of Cristina slamming the front door reverberated around the house, Jo stumbled into the kitchen and headed straight towards the coffee machine (Cristina's one and only addition to the household).

"You think maybe you could put some pants on before you just go wandering around my home...this isn't some sleazy frat house."

Jo looked over her shoulder at Alex, the light streaming through the kitchen window making her squint, before she glanced down at her attire. T-shirt and underwear. She couldn't see the problem.

"A sleazy frat house has more furniture, and it's not like I'm flashing your neighbours...unless of course, the neighbours aren't the problem at all and it's the sight of my unshaven, hairy legs that are..." Jo leaned up to find a coffee mug, deliberately flashing her white cotton underwear for extra effect, "...turning you on so much that you just _can't _keep your hands to yourself?"

Her attempt to catch him off his guard failed miserably though when Alex rebuffed her fake seduction with the one thing that he knew would dampen the mood.

"Yeah, in your dreams Princess."

Alex felt like crap for using that against her - he had resolved to himself that after finding out about her crappy childhood he wouldn't call her princess any more. Besides, Hobo Jo had a much better ring to it. But still, he almost felt bad enough to apologize..._almost_.

Jo stood and watched as he unfolded the morning paper and sat himself at the kitchen island, sipping on his own coffee.

"I thought you were going to stop calling me that."

"Yeah well, when go fishing sometimes you catch a boot."

She stood there, watching him ignore her in favour of reading up on what the local rag had to say about the news of Seattle Grace Mercy West's recent financial troubles. She could have acted like a petulant child being called a name that hurt her feelings, but she'd heard worse and decided simply to perch herself next to him, reading over his shoulder.

"Do you think it's as bad as the Seattle Times is making out?" she asked, referencing the headline of '_ER Department to Close - Job Cuts Still Uncertain_'.

"I think it's worse. Apparently the hospital is being 'streamlined' for sale. That could mean any of us are out on our ass tomorrow. Which is, of course, _perfect_ now that I have a mortgage to pay. Should have seen it coming, what with my luck."

Alex threw the paper down on the counter before rubbing his eyes and forehead in frustration. She was so used to seeing him in control at the hospital, performing procedures, telling her what to do. Even when he had opened up about his own upbringing it didn't seem like it held him back; he owned his problems because they were within his control. But the fate of the hospital was something that neither of them could do anything about.

"You're a great surgeon," she tried to reason, "I mean, you're a jerk _and_ a douche, you've probably slept your way through the majority of the nursing staff and interns, but you're a great surgeon. That's the most important thing isn't it?"

He turned and looked at Jo, his face relaxing as he allowed her compli-sult sink in.

"You would think that's what these decisions should be based on, but nobody really knows. What I do know is that if you have any chance of keeping your job as an intern, you have to get your OR hours up. Luckily for you, you're on my service today and I have a paediatric hernia repair that has your name written all over it..."

Just as Jo was about to protest her lack of experience, Alex shut her down immediately.

"...and don't give me any of your crap about not being ready. If you want to keep your job you gotta get over your issues and start stepping up. You'll thank me for it in the end."

"Alex I'm really not..."

He interrupted Jo again, taking a new approach to convince her.

"If you successfully get through today and don't kill any of my patients, I'll buy you a beer at Joe's."

Jo sighed and pulled herself up to go get ready for work.

"I'm pretty sure that _bribing_ me into surgery is unethical."

"It's not unethical, it's an incentive Wilson. And seriously..." he added, watching her skulk away from the kitchen, "...unless you want _me_ to start walking around in _my_ underwear to show you my hairy legs, please put _yours_ away by finding yourself some pants."

"You're gross," she called back as she trudged up the stairs to the bathroom.

"Friends are a reflection of yourself Hobo Jo..."

As he heard the bathroom door bang closed, Alex smirked to himself at having successfully handled his intern's terrible morning banter. He almost forgot what it was like not having her hanging around, being hungover and pant-less in his kitchen each morning.


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN GREY'S ANATOMY.**

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS - I REALLY APPRECIATE IT. I'LL TRY TO UPDATE AS OFTEN AS I CAN AND TRY TO KEEP THINGS AS TO THE PLOT OF THE SHOW AS I CAN THOUGH THIS WILL PROBABLY BE DIFFICULTY DEPENDING HOW FAST I CAN WRITE AS THE SHOW AIRS. JUST CONSIDER THIS TO HAVE TAKEN PLACE BEFORE LAST NIGHT'S EPISODE :)**

Alex sat on his couch, sipping from a bottle of beer, with Zola perched beside him, the little girl drawing furiously in her coloring book with a large red crayon. He watched her out of the corner of his eye, trying not to act like an uptight home-owner hoping to avoid the waxy, red mess from ruining his brand new upholstery.

"I know I'm a totally kick ass peds surgeon, but that doesn't mean I'm a sure thing for a babysitter."

Meredith wandered into the den and negotiated the unpacked items removed from the numerous cardboard boxes that littered the floor. Eventually she made it safely to the couch with her mug of tea before taking the other end of the couch.

"You're not babysitting Alex, I'm here," she beamed, trying to find a comfortable angle on the seat that wouldn't have the baby putting too much pressure on her bladder, "Jackson was right, this is a nice couch."

Alex groaned louder than he intended, briefly diverting Zola's attention away from coloring for a moment, "Don't start about the couch. It's just a piece of furniture. Wilson bought it with my money. End of ridiculously boring story."

Meredith smirked knowing that the subject she'd brought up to Alex the night before at the nurse's desk was probably weighing on his mind. You know, something about him being a man after all and the fact he was protesting too much.

"I see you finally started to unpack, just a shame you haven't actually put your things anywhere. Still waiting for Cristina to crack and furnish the place?"

Alex shook his head and allowed Zola to climb up onto his shoulders (anything to get her to stop playing with a red crayon on his new couch).

"The Da Vinci Code was easier to freaking crack. I'll eventually get around to it."

"Well, considering Jo made a decent effort with the couch, you should probably ask her to help. I don't really see you as the shopping for soft furnishings type of guy."

"Well I never pegged _you_ for the mothering type but I didn't ever say you couldn't do it," he huffed, "and will you seriously drop it about Wilson. She's not my personal decorator, I'm not going to sleep with her and she certainly isn't my girlfriend. Get over it."

"Ok, I didn't imply anything about Wilson other than she has good taste in home furnishings...and would you stop talking about s.l.e.e.p.i.n.g with people in front of my kid."

"Oh relax, Zola doesn't even know what that means yet - I'm a paediatric surgeon, I would know! And yes you did imply, you were implying all sorts of crap about Wilson. You _know_ you were trying to get me to talk about her," he replied before noticing the smirk on his friend's face, "...which you _totally_ just made me do. Dammit."

Alex pulled Zola off his back and set her down on the floor. He handed her the coloring book again to hold her attention from getting up to go snoop amongst his crap. Sighing, he sat back and turned back to Meredith who wasn't watching her daughter, but was instead watching him intently. It creeped him out to be honest, " OK stop looking at me like that. Why can't you guys just drop it?"

"Maybe because I don't understand why can't you see that there's something there between you? When was the last time you were friends this long with a girl without sleeping with them? Hmm...?"

Alex stared blankly at Meredith before raising his eyebrows at the obvious.

"...I mean besides me. Or Cristina," she added after the fact, though she wasn't sure she would ever say that Alex and Cristina were friends.

"I uh..." he stumbled, trying desperately to remember if he could count one of the interns he'd slept with as a friend before realizing that no, he most definitely couldn't say that about any of them, "...you know what? This is stupid. I don't need a girlfriend and I don't need you taking my only somewhat, bearable intern out of the palm of my hand and turning her into yet another chick who hates my guts. Stop trying to put ideas in my head."

"Why would you think she'd hate you if you asked her out? She's different Alex, you're different."

Alex shook his head and chugged down on his beer, giving him time to put together what it was he wanted to say.

"Jesus Mer, I never said she'd hate me if I asked her out, you're reaching! And I'm not different at all, I just grew up and realized there's no point in trying to have a relationship. Besides, even if I did want to ask her out, she already said she thinks of me like her big brother. It really is a lost cause Meredith so just move on already."

Meredith watched as Alex's face hardened and he picked away at the label on his bottle of beer. It bothered him that Jo had said he was like her brother. And if Alex really wasn't harbouring feelings for her then it shouldn't have bothered him as much as it clearly did.

"You see it now don't you?"

"See what?"

"What we've all been pointing out about you two, what you've denied endlessly for the past three weeks, you can see it!"

Alex twitched with irritation at the subject continuing to dominate conversation.

"No, it's not...look, any woman I've ever been remotely interested in has left, so even if I could get over my urge of wanting to choke Wilson every five damn minutes, the same thing's gonna happen - she'll either go crazy, move to another continent or get cancer and almost die. No good can come of me and Wilson."

"But you're so...suited. Like, she's the less annoying, female version of you."

He almost choked on his beer at her suggesting that he and Wilson were suited as a couple because she basically was him.

"Yeah that's really what I want for a girlfriend - someone who is as much of a jerk as I am, giving me crap every night over the dinner table. The only thing in common we have is that we had the same pathetic upbringing and I know what she's been through. I don't know, maybe I just feel protective like I was with Aaron and Amber. Nothing more to it and I'm sure she sees it the same way."

Meredith shook her head in frustration and placed her mug of tea on the floor in order to use her hands as if to emphasize her point.

"Alex, I get that you and Jo grew up in foster homes so there's some kind of bond there between you both, but even you have to know that a girl who has lived by herself since she was 16, worked her way through college then med school, and hasn't completely screwed up her intern year, doesn't need a bodyguard. I mean, yesterday she almost manhandled me out of the Pit after Jackson told her to keep watch. That girl doesn't need anyone to look after her so stop passing it off as that, you insult my intelligence with that kind of crap."

Silence settled in the den, even Zola didn't make a noise as she focused on her coloring book. Alex knew Jo didn't need him to look after her - he just found it hard to admit to himself that maybe it was more than that...and worse still, that he might just have feelings for her. Or at least he could if he stopped being a big, ass-sized avoider.

"Why do you even care?" he sighed.

"Because you're my friend and you should be happy," she replied reaching down to pick up Zola into her arms, "besides, this is a family home. I think that deep down you bought it for a reason Alex. If it's a drinking buddy you need then you have me, you know, when I finally push this kid out, and, to a lesser extent you have Cristina for brutal, honest advice. Do you really need to keep Jo in the friend zone?"

"If I nod and agree will you shut up about Wilson?"

Meredith glowered back at Alex, successful in her attempt to get him to see her side.

"Ok, fine, maybe you're right," he reluctantly conceded, knowing this was going to cause him more grief than his denial in the long run because ultimately he'd have to decide whether he should talk to Jo about it. In the meantime though, Alex distracted himself with something that had been bugging him for a couple of weeks.

"Just answer me one thing, you know, to settle a bet I have with Wilson?"

"Sure, what you want to know?"

"When we first met, you wanted to sleep with me, right?"

Meredith slapped his shoulder in disgust before muffling Zola's ears.

"You're an ass! Get out of here."

"I think you'll find this is my place now, _you_ get out of here."

He laughed at the sight of Meredith looking visibly like she wanted to vomit and relaxed back into the seat, waiting for Yang to get home so he could convince her to buy him something for dinner.


End file.
